NC Opportunity Scholarships: An Ongoing Debate Over School Choice and Discrimination
In the 2020-2021 school year, 456 private schools received money from Opportunity Scholarships, with 12,284 families receiving scholarships. Source
A debate rages over a program that has distributed over $750,000 in state funds to help low-income families afford private school tuition — North Carolina Opportunity Scholarships.
In the 2020-2021 school year, 456 private schools received money from Opportunity Scholarships, with 12,284 families receiving scholarships. Although income eligibility depends on the number of children in the family, two children means a household income of $32,227 or less qualifies a family to receive a scholarship for up to $4,200. The average private school tuition for students who receive a voucher is $5,500, so North Carolina lawmakers in both the House and Senate are attempting to raise scholarship amounts to over $5,000.
The vast majority of schools receiving Opportunity Scholarships are religious. It might seem counterintuitive for taxpayer money to be used to fund religious schools, especially those largely exempt from the regulation that governs public schools, but proponents argue the money is going to families who wish to educate their children in a manner compatible with their personal religious beliefs. Though these schools stand in violation of Title IX of the Civil Rights Act, which bars discrimination based on gender identity or sexuality, private religious schools are exempt from this requirement "to the extent that application of Title IX would be inconsistent with the religious tenets of the organization."
Proponents, who are predominantly Republican, also argue private schools in general better serve children than North Carolina public schools, as students receive more personal attention and access to better resources. This is particularly true after the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to cease in-person learning. Sen. Michael Lee (R-New Hanover), who is currently sponsoring a bill to expand Opportunity Scholarships, says, “It’s clear that after a year of being forced into ‘virtual learning’ working-class families want a bigger say in their child’s education and Opportunity Scholarships can give them back their voice.” Additionally, The Civitas Institution, a conservative policy organization, found Opportunity Scholarships and the concept of parental control over school choice enjoy broad public support. Particularly compelling is the argument that Opportunity Scholarships benefit low-income families and racial minorities who might otherwise be unable to afford a seat in a private school.
Some, however, disagree. Opponents of Opportunity Scholarships argue it is wrong to take public funding and invest it into private schools largely unaccountable to the state. They argue if this money were to instead go to chronically underfunded North Carolina public schools, even more students would be able to receive the same one-on-one attention and educational resources private schools are providing. National Education Association President Lily Eskelsen García says, “Unfortunately, vouchers do nothing more than starve already scarce funding from the public schools that 90 percent of North Carolina students attend, and give them to private schools that are unaccountable to parents and taxpayers.”
Most distressingly, many private schools have discriminatory admissions policy based on sexuality and routinely ban transgender students from expressing their gender identity. This fosters a culture of harassment of LGBTQ+ students, who are already more at risk than their peers of experiencing depression and attempting suicide. A student at Covenant Day School, a private Christian school which received $116,882 in state funds in the 2020-2021 school year, writes anonymously, “...the blatant hatred and disgust the staff and majority of the student body feels towards myself, my friends, and any other queer student...is absolutely repulsive.” Another student asks, “Why am I the exception to God’s love?”
The left-leaning North Carolina Association of Educators, the largest organization representing public school employees within the state, has initiated a lawsuit against Opportunity Scholarships. This is their second time doing so, after their 2015 suit resulted in a 4-3 vote by the state Supreme Court that broke along party lines — the 4 Republicans upholding Opportunity Scholarships and 3 Democrats dissenting. However, the court now has 6 judges appointed by Democrats, so the NCAE is trying once more, arguing that discrimination enforced by state taxpayer dollars is inherently wrong. However, on March 30, 2021, the state filed a motion to dismiss the case, as it had already been tried once and they allege the NCAE doesn’t have the grounds to sue.
Governor Roy Cooper also supports ending Opportunity Scholarships, and his proposed 2021 budget did not include funding for the program. The debate over the budget is ongoing, as is the lawsuit. Until a compromise is reached, the educators, parents, and students of North Carolina will continue to be caught in the middle of an ongoing debate over the schools children attend — and who shoulders the cost for them.